Littlerock man pleads not guilty in dog mauling death of jogger

Alex Donald Jackson was charged with murder after his pit bulls mauled a Lancaster woman to death.

LANCASTER, Calif. — A Littlerock man accused in the death of a female jogger, who was fatally mauled by pit bulls he owned, pleaded not guilty today to a murder charge.

Alex Donald Jackson, 29 is charged with murder, negligent ownership of a mischievous animal causing death or serious bodily injury, cultivating marijuana, possession of marijuana for sale and possession for sale of a controlled substance.

He is also charged with a count of assault with a deadly weapon stemming from a January confrontation with another person.

A preliminary hearing is scheduled for Aug. 19. Jackson, who remains jailed in lieu of $1.05 million bail, faces up to life in prison if convicted on the charges leveled against him, according to the District Attorney’s Office.

Deputy District Attorney Samantha MacDonald said that since January, authorities had received at least three other reports of Jackson’s pit bulls allegedly attacking people.

Jackson was arrested the day after the fatal May 9 attack. Sheriff’s deputies searched his home and confiscated eight dogs: six pit bulls and two mixed breeds, according to the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department.

Marijuana also was allegedly found growing on the property.

Jackson was released on bail May 10 while DNA tests were pending to determine if his dogs were involved in the death of Pamela Devitt, 63.

According to the Sheriff’s Department, Devitt sustained 150 to 200 puncture wounds, and DNA tests confirmed that blood found on four of Jackson’s dogs was the victim’s.